Student Earns Commendation From National Merit Scholarship Program

READER SUBMITTED: ACT

Gage Stone-Baker, a senior at EASTCONN's Arts at the Capitol Theater (ACT) arts magnet high school, has been named a Commended Student by the 2014 National Merit Scholarship Program.

"We're very pleased to learn about Gage's well-deserved recognition," said Thomas Cronin, EASTCONN's director of education services. "At ACT, we work hard to challenge all of our students with a rigorous, well-articulated academic program. Our entire school community shares in Gage's success." "We're so proud of Gage and his academic accomplishments," said ACT Principal Tracy Goodell-Pelletier. "This is just one more indication that he has a bright future ahead." Stone-Baker is a resident of Tolland.

A letter of commendation from the school and the National Merit Scholarship Corporation will be presented to Stone-Baker by Goodell-Pelletier.

About 34,000 Commended Students throughout the nation are being recognized for their exceptional academic performance. Although they will not continue in the 2014 competition for National Merit Scholarship awards, Commended Students placed among the top five percent of more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2014 competition by taking the 2012 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

"The young men and women being named Commended Students have demonstrated outstanding potential for academic success," said a spokesperson for the NMSC. "These students represent a valuable national resource. Recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic development, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation."

EASTCONN, a public, non-profit Regional Educational Service Center, administers ACT. Located in the Capitol Theater in downtown Willimantic, ACT is a full-day, comprehensive arts magnet high school that enrolls 140 students from 17 towns across the northeastern Connecticut region. To learn more about EASTCONN's ACT arts magnet high school, contact ACT Principal Tracy Goodell-Pelletier at 860-465-5636, or tpelletier@eastconn.org.